Workers' Compensation Fraud Costs About $5 Billion Per Year

According to The National Insurance Crime Bureau, workers' compensation fraud costs businesses (and really, all of us) $5 billion each year. Their investigations of insurance fraud show us that out of every ten dollars spent on workers' compensation insurance, one dollar is simply covering fraudulent claims. So when workers' comp fraudsters like Gaetano Williams, a Watertown corrections officer, or Michael Sherman from Columbia County, get thousands of dollars in fraudulent workers' comp benefits they don't really need - business owners pay higher workers' compensation insurance premiums as a result.

Type of Workers' Compensation Fraud

Gaetano Williams represents the most common type of workers' compensation fraud - a faked workplace injury. Sometimes people really do get injured on the job, but the injury would not really prevent them from going back to work even though they insist they are unable to work. Another type of fraud is when an individual creates a phony injury to avoid having to work.

Employers can also be the cause of workers' compensation fraud cases. Some will lie about how many employees they cover or report a reduced number of past injuries employees experienced on the job in order to pay lower insurance premiums.

Medical providers sometimes assist in workers' compensation fraud by inaccurately certifying the severity of an individual's injury so that they are eligible for workers' compensation benefits.

Unfortunately, workers' compensation fraud is why it can be so difficult for people who are really hurt on the job to get the compensation they deserve. If you have been hurt on the job and are in need of workers' compensation benefits, a workers' comp lawyer can help you put in a claim. Contact us for a confidential consultation at (866) 205-2415.